Chapter 337: A Clue
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Ge Lihua said, “There are so many goods. I don’t think they are going to sell them. They should already have a customer who is waiting to pick up these goods.”
The only people who knew about this were the victim and his two companions. However, their whereabouts were still unknown. At the thought of this, everyone’s hearts sank. Could it be that they were also dead?
At this moment, a constable ran over. “Sir, we found them…”
There were two rivers running parallel to each other in the east and west of Shuiyun County. The river was not wide, only about three to four meters. The green grass on both sides of the river was dense, and a row of weeping willows fluttered in the wind.
The weeping willows had been there for as long as the county people could remember. Some of the willow branches were so long that they could touch the water.
At this moment, beside a willow tree, a group of constables were salvaging the two corpses…
Chu Qingzhi and the others also rushed over.
“Lay them down and see if they can be saved,” Chu Qingzhi said.
The constable immediately did as he was told.
Chu Qingzhi went forward to check. One of them was completely hopeless, and the other was still breathing weakly. She slapped that person’s chest, and that person spat out a few mouthfuls of water and woke up.
As soon as he opened his eyes, the man shouted anxiously, “Tao Pengnan, Tao Pengnan…” After shouting this name, he died.
After a moment of silence, the head constable said, “Did he just call… Tao Pengnan?”
Chu Xujin said, “I also heard him calling Tao Pengnan.”
Ge Lihua said, “I think so too.”
The head constable said, “Then I’m not hearing things.”
Chu Xujin asked the constable beside him, “How did you find them?”
The constable said, “A passerby came here for a walk and saw a few people sneaking around. He was afraid, so he walked back and bumped into us…”
Chu Xujin nodded and walked towards Chu Qingzhi. “Fifth Sister, how did they die?”
Chu Qingzhi said, “Both of them had their heart meridians broken by someone using martial arts and were thrown into the river.”
The constable pulled the passerby over. “Tell us exactly what you saw.”
The passerby said fearfully, “I quarreled with my wife and stormed out. There are willow trees growing here, and the scenery is not bad. I wanted to come here to calm down. Unexpectedly, as soon as I walked over, I saw a masked person hitting the two people in front of him with both hands. The two of them were knocked down the river.”
The constable said, “His home is just over there.”
Chu Qingzhi observed the passerby. He did not have any martial arts skills and had the fragrance of medicinal herbs on him. He should be a small medicine seller. “Let him go back. This has nothing to do with him.”
The constable cupped his hands at Chu Qingzhi and brought the passersby away.
Chu Qingzhi stood up and took two steps back. “Search their bodies.”
After a body search, they found two jade pendants, a small knife, and a key, banknotes, and silver pieces.
Chu Qingzhi continued, “Take off their clothes and see if they have any tattoos on their bodies.”
These people were smugglers. She wondered if their bodies had a tattoo that represented their identity just like the secret guards of the An Huai Kingdom. If they did, she might be able to find some clues.
Chu Qingzhi pulled Ge Lihua to the side to avoid seeing the naked body of these two men. At the same time, she took the opportunity to study the belongings of the two men.
The jade pendants were very ordinary and were only worth a few taels of silver.
The knife was a sharp carving knife. There were marks on the edge of the blade. Chu Qingzhi wondered what they were going to do with such a knife.
The key was very ordinary. It should be the key for the boxes.
There was nothing interesting about the banknotes and silver pieces. However, when Chu Qingzhi glanced at the banknotes, she actually found a word written on it.
She quickly unfolded a banknote. On it was the word, “Yun.”
Chu Qingzhi thought for a moment. “What’s the relationship between Tao Pengnan and Yun?”
Ge Lihua guessed, “Qingzhi, could Tao Pengnan be the recipient of those goods?”
Now that there were too few clues, there was no way to confirm anything. At this moment, Chu Xujin walked over. “Fifth Sister, as you expected, the two of them have the same tattoo on them. It’s a rice grain tattoo.”
Chu Qingzhi said, “When we go back, check if the first victim has any tattoos on him.”
Chu Xujin agreed. “Okay.”
Ge Lihua told Chu Xujin about her and Chu Qingzhi’s discovery.
Chu Xujin took the banknote and looked at it. Then, he said, “I think the recipient is probably this Tao Pengnan, but the Darling Dynasty is so big. Finding someone based on a name is like finding a needle in a haystack.”
Ge Lihua looked at Chu Xuhua. “If we know the meaning of ‘Yun’, it won’t be difficult to find it.”
Chu Xujin agreed, but the problem came again. “Does this ‘Yun’ represent a person? An object? Or a signal?”
Everyone fell silent.
Chu Qingzhi suddenly thought of something. “Where is the final destination of these three merchants?”
“I think it’s Shuiyun County,” Ge Lihua analyzed. “Usually, traveling merchants are in a hurry to sell goods. When they pass by a place to rest, they usually only stay for one night but not three days. Moreover, traveling is tiring. They don’t even have time to rest. How can they have the energy to visit a brothel?”
Chu Xujin said, “If your analysis is correct, Tao Pengnan and Yun should be in Shuiyun County.”
Chu Qingzhi asked, “Is there anyone with the surname Tao in Shuiyun County?”
Chu Xujin thought for a moment and nodded. “Yes, I’ll bring you there immediately.”
The Tao family was about the same age as Chu Qingzhi’s adoptive family. They had dozens of people and were considered a middle-class family in the county. Their family was in the cloth and grain business.
It was already very late, but the Tao family’s residence was still brightly lit.
The constable stepped forward and knocked on the door. It took a long time for someone to come and open the door. It was an old man. He said with obvious impatience, “It’s already late. What are you here for?”
The constable said expressionlessly, “We’re here to look for Tao Pengnan.”
The old man’s expression changed. “Why are you looking for him at this time? He’s already dead.”
Chu Qingzhi and the others looked at each other, clearly not expecting this to happen.
Chu Xujin put on the air of an official and said, “Tao Pengnan is related to the case we’re investigating. We need to go in and take a look.”
This was the experience he had summarized. To these families with some background, he needed to show an unyielding attitude to suppress them. Otherwise, they would think that he was afraid of them.
The old man was in a difficult position. “Wait for a moment. I’ll inform Master.”
Chu Xujin grabbed the old man. “There’s no need. We’ll go in directly.”
Who knew if there was something fishy going on inside the residence? What if they hid the things when they were informed?
The two constables behind him went forward to pull the old man while the others entered the Tao Mansion.
Ge Lihua led the constables to walk in front. Chu Qingzhi and Chu Xujin walked at the back. As they walked, they observed the Tao Mansion.
The decoration in the mansion was neither ostentatious nor low-key. There was nothing unusual.
At this moment, a flustered servant girl walked over. When she saw the few of them, she immediately lowered her head. She was afraid of looking people in the eye. This was a sign of someone being guilty..
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